Dark Moon, Bright Star
by geshembo
Summary: A collection of stories around the life and love of a young cowboy and a county deputy in a small, conservative town in Montana. (This is a second trial of publishing these stories. I did not like the first trial much, hopefully this would be better.)
1. Montana's Justice

**a/n: **

**TL;DR:**

**Danny is a Deputy in the local police force who pines for everything Jersey, but can find peace for his wild nature only in the primal landscape of Montana.**  
**Steve is a real Cowboy, born and raised in his mother's horse farm then took it upon himself to keep it after she died.**

**oh, and they're both werewolves.**

**The long version:**

**It's been a while since Yul and I published something, but we did write. Mostly to ourselves. It began as writing characters to a roleplaying game (Werewolf- the apocalypse), based on our beloved pair- Steve and Danno.**  
**The setting (Lost pups in Winnett Montana) was dictated to us and we took it from there, and before we understood what was happening, it became the longest character sheet in human history. I think. We wrote about how they met, how they fell in love, how they learned about each other. And then… we just couldn't stop. The game itself is still running, but our guys now have an alternate reality in which they experience a different life.**  
**In our obsession to write more and more, we took inspirations from episodes, pictures, random tags and even dreams. We are unsure if these would be interesting to anyone but us, (it feels a bit like parents telling one boring story after another about their children), but… the internet tolerates everything. Maybe someone will enjoy this. Maybe that someone will write back to us to give us inspiration for more of these stories.**

*********This is a second trial of publishing these stories. I did not like the first trial much, hopefully this would be better.***********

* * *

**Chapter 1: Montana's Justice**

Danny didn't remember that it could get so dark out here.

Even though he spent three of his teenage years in this vast wilderness surrounding the small town of Winnett, Montana, the time he spent back in New Jersey afterwards wiped the experience away from his mind. But now he was back here, in the middle of nowhere, taking cover behind a massive crate that smelled nasty, in the dead of the night. And despite his keen vision, he was unable to see past his hand when he waved it in front of his face to get rid of buzzing insects.

"We should have brought night vision goggles or something." he muttered.

Meka, his existence by Danny's side marked only by the sound of his breath, let out a hushed laugh.

Danny frowned at him, a useless gesture in the dark. "What?"

"I'm just picturing you asking the Sheriff for a budget to buy night vision goggles." Meka whispered back.

Danny sighed. "Seriously? We have a budget for two state of the art cattle transport trucks but not goggles?"

"They proved useful in the floods last year." Meka answered dryly. "I'll tell you what we really should have done, though. Not come out here."

"Yeah, you said that. Multiple times."

"And I'll keep saying it until you admit it's a waste of time." Meka insisted.

Danny was actually about ready to admit exactly that but not out loud just yet. "We had to give it a chance, we have no other leads. The results from the lab…"

"More waste of time." Meka commented "And money."

"...will not be ready anytime soon," Danny continued uninterrupted "because apparently they were shipped to Billings using a cow or something, and…"

"Will tell us absolutely nothing because we live in a place full of farmers that are using all kinds of poisons in their day to day job." Meka concluded.

"You don't know that!" Danny protested "Maybe they used some kind of really exotic poison that is used for a very specific kind of...sheep's... super-curly-wool-growth or something."

Meka snorted. "Sure."

Danny ran his hand through his hair. "Anyway, stalking the second water tower is currently the only plausible way of making some progress. Maybe the perp is stupid enough to poison it too and finish his job." Danny said without conviction. It was the third night in a row that he sat here. The other two were with Grace, she was his official partner, but she refused to come tonight and he had to bribe Meka with a promise for a beer in order to convince him to come.

They sat in silence for a while, and Danny started to feel the darkness closing in on him again. "OK, let's…" A remote sound of an engine and, thank god, an artificial light crawling towards them stopped him. "Look!"

"I see it." Meka answered. "Maybe Jenkins **is** stupid enough."

"You don't know that it's Jenkins." Danny admonished

"I guess we'll find out soon."

They watched as a truck rolled closer, then stopped next to the water tower. The engine was left running and the headlights flooded the space underneath the tower, as a tall man wearing a cowboy hat and a jacket, stepped out from behind the wheel. Danny blinked against the harsh light and shadows to try and make out his face. He couldn't recognize him, but one thing was certain. "That doesn't look like Jenkins." he whispered.

"No. It doesn't." Meka said slowly, then added "Shit."

Danny spared him a short glance before returning it to the scene under the tower. "What? You recognize him?"

Meka didn't reply. Another guy appeared from the other side of the truck, wearing the same jeans-jacket-hat outfit. He was holding a shorter man by his arm, dragging him in front of the headlights. The shorter man seemed to be wearing pajamas, a sack was over his head and his wrists were tied in front of him.

"What the fuck?!" Danny muttered and started to get up, but Meka grabbed his arm. "Wait."

"What do you mean, wait?" Danny whispered angrily.

Meka's answer came annoyingly slow "Nothing's happened yet. Let's just wait and see…"

"You call this nothing?!"

"Danny, please, trust me. Just watch."

The shorter man was now on his knees, facing the blinding headlights. The sack was off, and **this **was definitely Jenkins, their prime suspect, the man that everybody knew poisoned Martin's water tower, and killed all the crops in his east field. Everybody knew, but no one could prove it.

From their hiding spot, Danny and Meka could not hear what was said under the tower, above the roar of the still running truck engine. They could see though, very clearly, as the headlights lit up the scene like a stage. Both tall men had scarves pulled over their faces, one was standing behind Jenkins, keeping him on his knees, the other stood in front of him, a shadow against the blinding lights. He was now filling a bottle with water from the tower, then forced it down Jenkins' throat. Danny was ready to interfere again, but this time Meka's grip was firm as he pulled him back down. "Meka!" Danny almost yelled, "What the fuck!"

The sound of Jenkins' whimpering and coughing could be heard.

"Please, Danny. You don't know what you're seeing, don't interrupt." Meka half pleaded, half ordered.

Danny was getting furious "I know perfectly well what I am seeing! A man being tortured, probably kidnapped from his bed, by two oversized goons!"

"Yeah but…" Meka squirmed under his gaze "You don't understand, this is not...it's...it'll be…"

"What? What is it, please! Enlighten me! Preferably before the guy is killed in revenge for some brutally murdered tomatoes!"

"He won't be killed." Meka gestured with placating motions "What you are seeing is Montana's Justice…"

"Montana's Justice?!" Danny tried very hard to refrain from yelling. He wasn't very successful. Meka motioned him to lower his voice, but it was too late. The scene was suddenly quiet again, except for the running engine. Danny took a quick look, one of the tall men, the one that seemed to run the show, was walking towards them, then stopped a few feet away.

Danny had no idea why instead of just stepping out and facing him, he dove right back into cover.

A soft wind was blowing, carrying a faint smell to his sensitive nose. It caught Danny's attention immediately. Horses. A tinge of aftershave and something else. Familiar, very distinct, Danny couldn't put his finger on it, but he was mesmerised by it.

"Someone's here!" The tall man called and ran back towards the truck.

The call brought Danny back to his senses, he jumped out, pulled his gun and yelled "Sheriff's department, don't move!"

The guy, with his freakishly long legs, was already at the truck.

"Stop or I'll shoot!" Danny yelled again, but Meka beside him was pulling his arm down as he aimed carefully at the truck's tires.

The headlights went off immediately, leaving them again in total darkness, with only the sound of the engine moving away quickly. Danny ran forward a few feet, but it was pointless, he couldn't even see where he was stepping. The truck was gone, The perps were gone, and so was Jenkins. "What the fuck, Meka!" Danny yelled at the general direction he thought Meka might be standing. "What the hell were you doing?! We had them, they were in my sights!" He continued yelling while holstering his gun and taking out his cellular "What the hell is going on here! Why were you acting like this?! an innocent guy was just kidnapped, did you forget that you're a cop?!"

Meka was beside him, pulling down the arm holding the cellular. Danny pushed him off violently, he's had enough of this.

"Danny, listen…"

"No! No, I'm done listening to you!" he held the phone against his ear "We just witnessed a crime and did nothing because you…"

"911 what's your emergency?" a female voice in his ear chimed

"This is deputy Williams," Danny's tone changed a bit "I need back up pursuing suspects in a dark colored truck, black or blue, driving north from...Martin's west field water tower."

"Ummm, OK." The sleepy voice answered "I'll get Parish, he is on call. He'll be with you in… twenty five minutes."

"Twenty five minutes!" Danny yelled at the phone, "Fucking cow infested wasteland. Don't bother, just… put out an APB"

"Sure, honey." the voice on the line said calmly "Dark-colored truck. Do you have a license plate? model?"

Danny rolled his eyes and disconnected the call. One glance at Meka and he started to walk towards the water tower, holding the phone's flashlight to illuminate the treacherous, muddy landscape. "Explain." He demanded, trying to keep his temper down. The world was obviously against him. "What is this Montana's Justice? A heavy metal rock band that is above the law?"

"Danny…"

"Some kind of a local super villain team lacking imagination? 'cause I'm telling you, if we find Jenkins' body at the side of the road, I am not going down for this."

"It's not…"

"Then what is it, and why is 'it' allowed to commit a crime in front of a couple of cops?"

"Danny!" Meka now yelled. "I'll answer, just shut up for a second!"

Danny just gestured for him to continue. Meka sighed. "The guys we just saw… you remember asking me about a bunch of complaints that were canceled without explanation? Cases that just seemed to solve themselves? These guys are responsible for them. They step in, rumor has it, at the request of the victims, when the police hit a dead end or can't help for some reason. The problem is solved and…"

Danny was starting to look around, taking pictures of the truck's tires marks and several different footprints "So you allow vigilanties to do as they please, with no regard to…"

"No one gets hurt, Danny. Sometimes the perp gives himself to the police, sometimes the problem just gets fixed. What are you doing?"

"Posting on instagram, what does it look like I'm doing? It's a crime scene, I'm collecting evidence. I can't believe you are letting this happen, there is a proper way to…"

"Danny, sometimes, out here, the law is not the best way to solve things. It's not like in the big city, people here depend on their ability to…"

"I know what's it like here! I lived and worked in my uncle's farm for three years, I know what it's like to be a farmer."

"Then you know that sometimes just getting the perp to justice is not enough. Even if it is the proper way."

"I don't know that, Meka. A crime occured. You need to prove who did it, beyond a reasonable doubt, you can't just go by a hunch, decide who that was and pass judgment. You know, I guessed there was some kind of a conspiracy with these cases. It didn't feel right. This vigilante business, how long has it been going on? does everybody know about it? Are you always covering it up?" He suddenly stopped in his tracks, grabbed Meka's arm and turned him so they faced each other "Meka, do you know who they are? These guys?"

Meka lowered his gaze, shifting his weight uncomfortably.

"Oh my god, you do know who they are!"

"I don't!" Meka replied hastily

"You do!"

"I don't! There is a rumor…"

"Who are they, Meka!"

"I really don't know. But it might be that one of them is the Sheriff's son."


	2. The beginning of a beautiful friendship

Steve sat leaning back in his chair, his grip still on the handle of his large beer glass, which was mostly untouched. He let the conversation flow around him, or rather - one of Nick's drunk speeches flow around him. That guy was not letting their near-fuckup get to him. And why should he? They were not caught, they got what they needed from Jenkins, and he didn't know about that weird scent Steve caught next to the crates. It was not unpleasant, just strange, animalistic, something like the scents he usually caught while he ran deep into the woods. But it was nothing he sniffed before. When he caught that scent he had to fight the urge to shift, to investigate further. He had to remind himself that he wasn't alone and whatever it was out there had clear human scents as well. So he now sat at the pub, celebrating the completion of another successful job, but his mind was still at that field, hung up on that mystery of last night.

Maybe he will go there tonight, as a wolf, and track down that smell. He really didn't like not knowing what it was.

He was so caught up in planning, calculating times, determining he should leave in the next half hour if he wanted to achieve anything, that it took him a while to realize that the scent was present right here, right now, and it wasn't just in his mind. He sat up, looking around, not really sure what he was looking for. The pub contained the usual amount of people on a Saturday night, all familiar faces.

Or mostly all. Next to the bar stood a young man, about his own age, short but sturdy, wide shoulders, blonde hair combed backwards and looking as out of place as a cow in a stable.

Steve watched as the guy talked with Amber, the waitress. He had a nice smile but there was a tightness about it. About all his stance.

"Hey," Steve shoved the man next to him "Freddie, do you know who this guy is?"

Freddie followed his gaze and shrugged, Nick shouted "What guy?".

"Him." Steve didn't even bother gesturing. It was clear who he meant, a new face around here was rare. Amber was pointing at their table, and the new guy turned to look, his eyes fixed on them. He exchanged a few more words with Amber, then got up and started walking towards them. The scent was getting clearer. Halfway to them he suddenly stopped, just for a fraction of a second, hesitating, lifted his chin, nostrils widening, then his eyes fixed on Steve again and he continued his approach.

"I think he's the new deputy." Nick said. "I saw him around town wearing uniforms a few times."

Great. Steve heard about the new deputy more times than he cared for lately. All of these times, it was his father talking. And he never heard his father bragging about someone so much.

Steve's first thought was that his father sent this guy here to befriend him. Dad didn't really approved of his choice of friends. But then again… that scent. Steve was sure the man was there last night.

"McGarrett? Steve McGarrett?" The blonde was looking straight at him, and the expression on his face was as far from friendly as possible.

"Who wants to know?" Nick answered for him, words dragging.

The guy looked at Nick, eyes narrowing like he was contemplating something. "Danny Williams." he replied "**Deputy** Danny Williams." He looked back at Steve. "May I have a word with you outside?"

Steve made no move except stretching his legs under the table "Why?"

"Because you might not want anyone around when I'll tell you what I have to tell you."

Steve smiled widely. "Really? I'm curious, deputy Williams." for a moment, Steve considered stepping outside with this guy. Maybe sniff him properly. He shoved that last, weird, thought away in disgust. The hesitation allowed Nick to answer for him again_._

"You can talk here. We're all friends here!" Nick announced drunkenly

Deputy Williams' eyes drilled him again thoughtfully, then he said slowly, "Yeah...Maybe it would interest you as well." he leaned forward, putting both hands on the table, head turned to Steve. "I want you to know that I know where you've been last night, I know what you did, I know it's not the first time, and I am going to do everything in my power to put a stop to that."

So he was indeed there last night. Steve kept that smile on his face while playing out the scene this guy possibly witnessed. It was dark, they had scarves covering their faces. "I have no idea what you are talking about." Steve's reply came with a slight delay but he covered it up by sipping slowly from his beer.

"You do, you little prick." Danny shot back. "I know guys like you, you think you can get away with anything because your father …"

Steve got up suddenly, making both Freddie and Nick jump back in their seats "You know nothing about me." he hissed in a low voice, focusing his suddenly harsh gaze on Danny, looming above him.

"I know your type." Danny didn't flinch "Arrogant bastards that think they own their little town because no one ever dares standing up to them." His hands were flying as he spoke "You probably think you are doing someone a favour with all this Judge Dredd routine you got going on, but all you do is keep this town in the wild west. No laws, no one gets a fair chance, 'cause hey! McGarrett junior decided you are guilty!" Steve was fascinated. A bit confused. Trying to find a breather in the guy's monologue to respond. But Williams just kept on going "You want justice? You go to the police academy, law school, do things the proper way, but that is too much effort for your ape level mind, right? Why do things properly if you can just bully your way and drag people out of their beds in the middle of the night?"

"As I said." Steve spat "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I **know **you were out there."

"You have any proof of that?" Steve challenged.

"Not yet," Danny answered immediately, "But I'll get one."

"Until you do, get out of my face."

If it's possible, the guy seemed to get angrier, his face more red, his gestures more wide. "I am not finished!" he yelled back "It's guys like you that think they know better than anyone else that makes me sick. You are nothing but a gangster" he was now waving his finger in front of Steve and poking him in his chest "surrounding yourself with your lackies 'cause you need someone to tell you how right you are all the time…"

"Take that finger off my face…" Steve stepped closer, but Williams stood fast and kept poking

"...But what you really need is someone to wipe that smug smile off your face!"

Steve grabbed the wrist of the hand poking him with one palm, shoving Danny back with the other, "I said, get your finger off my face!"

Danny fell back, almost losing his balance, bumping into a table and spilling beer that splashed all over his pants. But he barely hesitated a second before he shot forward swinging his right arm in a quick, wide motion, and his right fist connected with Steve's jaw in a crushing blow.


	3. Meet the parents

Danny sat at his desk, holding an ice pack over his eye with one hand, the other was holding a pen, tapping nervously on the open notebook. He stopped pretending to work a while ago, there was no one there but himself to witness the pretence anyway, his eyes were fixed on the door leading to the holding cells.

In the couple of hours after the fight, his anger was gradually replaced by shame, although he did manage to wipe that man's smug smile off his face. He could imagine Steve's expression on the other side of the door, it probably didn't change much since he put him there. Serious, angry, quiet. At one point he thought that the guy might be getting an aneurysm.

Halfway to the station Danny started to question his decision to arrest Steve. The guy deserved that, of course, but he should be arrested for grabbing Jenkins and torturing him, not for disturbing the order or attacking a police officer. After all, the said police officer did provoke him, **and **punched him back. So Danny was more than ready to release him, all he needed was for the guy to apologize. But every time he looked at himself in the mirror, the nasty cut on his cheek and his rapidly forming black eye stared back at him, he got too angry to even ask for one. He didn't think he'd get one anyway. Danny wondered what was it about the man that angered him so much, caused him to lose all the self control he carefully learned to muster over the years, caused his wild nature to make an appearance after so long. That was the reason he came back to Montana. In Jersey he missed the vast space to run and hunt and it became very hard to keep the animal relaxed and contained.  
His gaze wandered to the computer screen, where an open complaint form was displayed. Nothing was typed there though, except the name 'Steve'. He closed the form. He was not going to file a complaint. He would get McGarrett, and stop his vigilante work, but this was not the way.

Danny got up from his seat, went to the freezer to get another ice pack- he was pretty sure the man's jaw had swollen, and made his way to the holding cells.

Steve was sitting there, long legs spread out in front of him, head leaning back against the wall. His jaw was indeed turning purple and the small cut next to his eyebrow was crusted with blood but seemed to stop leaking a while ago.

Steve looked at him without moving his head. No trace of the defiance or smugness in his expression. Maybe he did learn a lesson.

Danny opened the cell door, stood in front of him and handed him the ice pack.

Steve folded his legs and leaned forward, taking the ice pack. His eyes didn't leave Danny's.

"Look, I'm sorry for…" Danny waved at the general direction if his jaw. "It wasn't professional."

Steve kept looking at him, holding the pack against his jaw.

Danny returned the look expectantly, but nothing happened. "Aren't you going to apologize too?"

"Apologize?" Steve asked, his voice gruff.

"Yes, you know, something that human beings do when they make a mistake. 'Thank you deputy for the ice pack' 'I'm sorry deputy for hitting you'. Basic communication skills."

Steve examined him for a few quiet seconds. "Are you going to let me go?"

Danny was getting annoyed again, though it was beyond him why. It's not like he expected that arrogant son of a bitch to behave like normal people. He opened his mouth to answer, but Steve continued before he could. "I thought it was a good fight, until you decided to end it with handcuffs."

"Of course you did!" Danny's hands flew to his sides. "Because this is how you solve things in this primitive wasteland, isn't it? No law, no order, just the typical who's got the biggest dick contest!"

Steve's frown deepened, Danny continued his tirad "The Sheriff's own son…"

"Deputy Williams?"

Danny turned around startled, and then looked at his watch. It was midnight, Saturday evening, what the hell was the Sheriff doing here? "Sir?"

"What is this?" his gaze moved between Danny and Steve, who was now standing as well, ice pack left on the bench.

_Fuck_. Danny looked at him, running his hands through his hair, struggling with words uncharacteristically. "Nothing, Sir, I mean, Mr. McGarrett, your son...ummm, he...at the bar…"

"What did you do, Steve?" The sheriff gaze was now fixed on Steve, his harsh tone directed at him. He moved closer, stepping into the cell, examining his son's face

Steve shifted slightly. He was a bit taller than his father, but although the same defiance that Danny saw at the bar reappeared, his stance was more defensive. He looked smaller. He didn't answer his father, just looked at him silently. "Bar fight from the looks of it." the Sheriff determined. He threw a look at Danny "And you attacked a deputy."

Danny suddenly felt compelled to intervene "Sir, I must admit, I provoked him, and…"

The Sheriff didn't even spare him a glance, his hands crossed on his chest, his words aimed at Steve "You keep telling me that you are responsible enough to run the Ranch, then you go and get mixed up in a fight…"

Danny saw Steve's muscles tense even more at the mention of the ranch. The anger was back in his eyes "The Ranch has nothing to do with this, dad, it's ju…"

"It has everything to do with that! I kept my mouth shut about your idiotic fight club, but dragging my men into this, getting yourself arrested, this is unacceptable! It shows me, and the rest of the world, how immature you are. Do you think anyone would do business with a hot headed child? Look at you! You look like a drunken bully!" Steve rubbed his swollen jaw self consciously. Danny found himself feeling for the guy.

"Deputy Williams!" Sheriff McGarrett turned sharply to him "Did you file a complaint?"

"No, Sir, in fact I was just about to release him, I think he just needed to…"

"Are you on duty tomorrow?"

-"No Sir"

"You are now. You," he turned back to his son "are on roadkill watch tomorrow, and you" he turned pointing back at Danny "are going to keep an eye on him."

"Dad! I have groups coming tomorrow…"

"You should have thought of that before you decided to act out! Do you prefer to spend the day in here?"

Steve didn't answer, jaw tightened, he looked like he was about to have an aneurysm again.

"Then it's settled, I'll call Chin and…"

"**I'll** call Chin!" Steve cut him off angrily

"As you wish. Be here at six AM sharp. Dismissed." Steve walked out of the cell and disappeared quickly with long strides under both Danny's and the Sheriff's gaze. "Williams, My office."

Danny followed Sheriff McGarrett dutifully to his office. His boss stood tall behind his desk facing him, studying him. "What happened between you and my son, deputy?"

"We...Ummm" Danny chose his words carefully. He wasn't sure he was ready to confront the Sheriff regarding his son's night job. And he had no doubt that it was Steve out there. He recognized the distinct scent when he approached him at the bar. "We exchanged some words, and it got… out of control."

The Sheriff examined him quietly for a few seconds. Danny moved uneasily, hoping that there would be no further investigation, but no such luck "What about?"

Danny took a deep breath. The last thing he wanted was to lie to his boss, whom he respected dearly, but telling him the truth at this point was not a wise move. It was either the Sheriff knew and protected Steve, or he didn't know and Danny, the new deputy in town, would be the bearer of bad news. Either way there was a slim chance this was going to end well. You don't do that when your only evidence is 'I recognized his scent'. "I am sorry, Sir, it's a personal matter, I would rather not get into it."

"I see." The Sheriff's stance changed suddenly, muscles relaxing a bit. He leaned forward on his desk. "I must tell you I am disappointed. I was hoping you two would become friends."

Danny didn't know how to answer that so he stuck to the confused expression which he probably already wore.

"You are the same age. The years you spent here, you studied in high school together. You don't remember him? He was the football team's quarterback."

Danny tried to dig up some images from that time. But he was wrapped up in his own rage and confusion back then. He had a few friends, and he played baseball, but he didn't engage in any of the usual highschool social activities. Steve sure seemed like the guy who would spend most of his time getting drunk at parties. "I'm sorry, I…"

"Yeah, you two probably hung out in different crowds." It was obvious what the Sheriff thought about the crowd Steve chose. He straightened his back again "Thank you, Williams, for not pressing charges, and I apologize on Steve's behalf. He sometimes forgets he's supposed to be an adult."

"It was my fault too, Sir, I…"

"I appreciate that you are taking responsibility for this, Deputy," The Sheriff cut him off "but I know my son. He is a good man most of the time, but tends to solve issues with violence. I recognize your part in this, and your retribution would be tomorrow's duty. I'm assuming this will not happen again."

"It won't, Sir."

"Good. Dismissed."

Danny nodded and left the office, then the station, longing for the cool air outside. The street was empty, and for a second he wondered where Steve was. He got here from the pub in Danny's car, and both the pub and the McGarrett Ranch were about 20 miles away. Maybe he called one of his friends. Danny shrugged, got into his car, and began the drive home letting his mind wander, going over the events of the evening.

Although he regretted arresting Steve- a rushed and emotional decision- he wasn't about to back off on this. He saw Steve drag out a poor, innocent man in the middle of the night. Well, maybe not innocent, more like 'hasn't been proven guilty yet', but that was beside the point. And from what Meka told him, this was not a one time thing. But he also was the Sheriff's son, and, again, from the way Meka talked about this, not all here would agree with Danny that this was wrong, so he has to be careful and calculated. No more provoking the guy, no matter how frustrated he got. He would keep an eye on his every move, and unlike Steve, gather hard evidence before he acts on his accusations. And he should start right now, before Steve had a chance to get rid of any evidence Danny might find. The one thing Danny suspected his outburst at the bar has done, was to clarify to Steve that he can't do as he pleases anymore. Someone was watching him, and that would put him on guard.

Danny turned the car around to the road leading to the McGarrett's Ranch.

* * *

The dogs were barking.

Steve barely had time to settle in his bed before he threw the blanket off of him, sniffing the air while silently pulling out the shotgun from the closet near his bed. He could not catch the dogs' scent from here, let alone whatever was rattling them. He debated shifting, to heighten his senses, but instead just descended quickly and quietly down the stairs.

The barking was coming from the back.

He moved efficiently through the house in the dark, the place of every piece of furniture etched into his mind, and stood next to the kitchen window facing the back porch. The barking suddenly stopped, changed into a low threatening growl. The dogs felt threatened somehow. Steve relaxed a bit. If that was the case, most chances were that it was a wild animal that has wandered in, not a human burglar.

He moved the curtain and peeked outside.

Both dogs were next to his truck, Wolf was just a dark shadow, but Tala's light fur could be seen in the darkness. And there was something else. Another dog, maybe? It was a bit larger than Tala, fur as bright as hers. The dogs trapped it between them and the truck. Steve opened the door and stepped outside, holding the gun at the ready.

The strange scent he caught last night at the field, then at the bar, hung in the air, strong and obvious now.

"Tala! Wolf!" he called the dogs on instinct, his mind struggling to catch the meaning of it. Was deputy Williams somewhere around here? Both dogs reluctantly backed away from the animal, not giving up their threatening stance.

Steve just stood motionless as he looked at the large animal, pointing his shotgun at It. A wolf. Slim legs, golden fur bright in the moonlight. As the dogs retreated it visibly relaxed, and instead of looking at them, he raised his head to Steve, glowing, intelligent eyes examining him.

Steve didn't realize he was holding his breath. Could it be…? The Wolf started walking backwards, slowly, along the truck, eyes fixed on Steve's face. He wasn't exactly frightened, Steve could not catch the scent of fear, more like on guard, unsure. And the sentiment caused Steve to drop the barrel of his weapon immediately. _I am not going to shoot you._

Both dogs responded to his move by leaping forward, interpreting it as a call for them to take action. "Stay!" Steve ordered sharply. For a second all three animals seemed to obey, but then the Wolf, who reached the end of the truck by now, turned quickly and ran off.

Steve, without thinking, leaped after it, "Wait!" he called almost desperately. The animal was much faster than his human legs, and he fought the irrational urge to shift right then and there. Instead he made another irrational gesture- "Williams!"

The wolf, which already reached the open gate, stopped in his tracks, then turned its head. From this distance it was not much more than two shining spots- eyes reflecting the dim light.

Steve slowed down, not sure what to do. Should he approach it...him? Should he stay back? Keep talking? The decision was taken from him as the wolf turned back, leaped and vanished into the night, leaving Steve behind, breathing hard and heart racing.


	4. Quality Time

Steve couldn't get much sleep after that. Time moved quickly, and not fast enough. He was going to meet Williams again in a few hours. Usually such a thing, a clear deadline on solving a mystery, was enough to relax him into a good sleep, but not tonight. Was it really possible? The strange scent… was he actually identifying another werewolf?

At four he got up, as usual, starting his morning routine on autopilot, mind still hung on Danny and the wolf. Chin, his ranch manager, arrived precisely at four thirty, Steve was already at the stables by then. Chin apparently got his late night message, because he started to reprimand Steve as soon as he got into view, but Steve wasn't paying much attention to it, until Chin physically grabbed his arm and turned him around. "What the hell is going on with you, Steve?"

"Hmmm? Nothing, what do you mean?"

"I spent the last ten minutes yelling at you for bailing on a Sunday, and you just...listened. Were you listening?"

"Not really, sorry." Steve admitted. "I asked Anzo to come by and cover for me, I think it will be fine, I'll try to…"

"It **will** be fine!" Chin stated, "I just want to know what happened. You look...like you had a rough night, and not in your usual way."

"I'm fine." Steve answered curtly and turned back to continue his work.

"Yeah, I Know. None of my business."

"Right." Steve agreed "My dad might feel obligated to check up on things today while I'm gone, just smile and nod, you know the drill."

-"Yeah, I do."

-"And call me if anything…"

-"You probably won't give me a chance and call every five minutes anyway."

-"Funny."

"Sad." Chin replied and walked away.

Steve finished what he could, then debated whether to give himself some time to shower before he has to go to town, and decided not to. A tiny, petty, punishment to Danny, being stuck in a car with him smelling like horses and sweat. He paid a visit to Spirit instead, his friends made sure the horse got back home safely last night after he was taken into custody. Steve already checked him when he returned home, but he felt better seeing him in daylight again.

At three minutes to six, he parked his truck next to the police station. Danny arrived a few minutes later, looking as bad as Steve did. Almost. He looked worn, but there was no sign of his black eye. Steve was pretty sure it was there yesterday, he was the one responsible for it, and there's only so much an ice pack can do.

He knew one possible reason for this miraculous healing.

Danny just signaled him to follow, got into one of the police trucks and started driving towards the outskirts of town.

At first Steve thought maybe Danny wanted to get some distance between them and the nosy occupants of the town before he said something, but Danny just kept driving silently. Steve was busy studying his profile and playing last night's events out in his head. It was a stressful night. Long night. Could it be that he imagined things? Imagined that that wolf smelled like Danny? Maybe he was so desperate to finally find someone like himself, to have someone else to share this with, that he just picked the first stranger that happened to be around and sensed what he wanted to sense about him?

"You won't find roadkill inside the car." Danny said suddenly.

Steve realized he was staring and turned his head to look out the window "I know where roadkill can be found."

-"You sure? 'Cause I'm not one."

"I'm sure." Steve answered sarcastically "Done this before."

-"This I can believe."

-"What does that mean?"

-"It means that I can picture you getting into trouble every second Sunday."

"Again." Steve's voice turned cold, he looked at Danny again "You don't know me."

Surprisingly, Danny released a long sigh. "Let's just not talk."

"Fine by me." Steve huffed back and turned away again.

The silence lasted about five seconds. "How did you know?" Danny blurted out.

"Know what?" Steve thought he knew what Danny was asking. He tensed in his seat and turned to him.

Danny took a deep breath "That...it was me out there." Steve could see him swallow. Throat working.

Finally. Steve took a breath of his own "I recognized the scent," He replied carefully "and the... **concept **is not new to me."

"Fuck. Fuck!" Danny smacked the wheel "I spent years thinking I'm alone, wondering if there is anyone else like me, hoping to meet someone I can talk to about this, and then it's you! of all people, the most, smug, vexatious person, Fuck!"

Steve watched him incredulously "vexatious?"

-"Yes, vexatious, annoying, irritating, it explains why I want to punch you every time you…"

-"I know what vexatious means."

-"That's a surprise!" Danny exclaimed and then "What the hell?" He hit the brakes hard as the car coming opposite them started swaying, almost bumping into them. It passed them quickly and Steve could catch the driver's face. He seemed to be frozen in some kind of painful spasm. Danny turned the car around, switched the siren on and started chasing it.

"Something's wrong" Steve commented

-"You think?!"

-"Get to the side of it"

-"What? Why? he is driving like he's under the influence, he will drive us off the road!"

-"I don't think he's drunk, get to the side of the car!" Steve ordered "Let's see what's up".

"Fuck!" Danny cursed again but switched lanes and accelerated.

Steve opened the window, peering out as Danny brought them side by side with the speeding car, matching their movement to the erratic motion of it.

Two kids were seated at the back. The driver was holding the wheel in a death grip with one hand, the other one fisted against his chest. The smell of burned rubber was thick. "He's having a heart attack or something! Fuck!" Steve added his own curses to Danny's.

"Dispatch," Danny's voice filled the cabin, "this is deputy Williams going north east on 200, about 5 miles out of Winnett, chasing an out of control vehicle. Requesting back up and an ambulance!"

Steve roamed the glove department searching for a safety hammer. His own truck had all the needed equipment for such occasions. Then again so should a police vehicle. He got the small spring hammer, released his seatbelt and started to climb to the back seat.

"What are you doing?!" Danny demanded, risking a glance back.

"There are broad shoulders up ahead," Steve called over his shoulder "Get in parallel to the passenger side of the car."

"What are you going to do?" Danny asked but slowed, falling behind the car again, then navigating to its other side.

Steve didn't answer. He was concentrating on his next move. He earnestly hoped Danny was a good driver. They were going about eighty miles per hour, there was little room for error. He rolled down the back seat window, waiting for them to be in the right position. "A little further, I need to reach the passenger window!" he yelled to Danny

"What are you planning to do?" Danny called back, but again, accelerated, bringing them into position.

Steve remained silent. He was not sure himself, and he certainly didn't have the attention span needed to explain this to Danny. He just needed him to cooperate. He reached forward, hands and shoulders outside the window, and tried to attach the hammer to the passenger seat window of the other car. It was harder than he thought, he didn't have enough leverage to press the hammer against the window. Changing his stance to sit on his knees facing the window, he leaned forward, his entire upper body outside the window, and pressed hard. The window shattered. He squirmed, changing his position again, sitting on the ledge, steadying himself with an arm sprawled across the roof. Danny was still shouting something, it was hard to hear above the wind and engine roar. Steve stayed focused on the task.

He cleaned the remaining glass blocking his way with his fist, took a deep breath, studying the motion of both cars until it was as synced as possible. Danny was a good driver. "Keep it steady!" he shouted back, then, quickly before he could change his mind, pushed forward launching himself through the other car's shattered window.

The world swayed, his head bumped against the driver's tense body, and distressed screams came from somewhere in the back seat. But he was in.

Steve collected himself, straightening in the seat, spared a quick glance towards Danny, ignoring the horrored expression, waved him back and shouted "I'm good, now stay back!".

The driver's body was locked, muscles clenched. His shoulders pressed against the backrest, both legs stretched, both feet on the brakes. He was still clutching his chest "Keeps…" he breathed out heavily, voice strangled "Accelera…"

"Shit…" Steve muttered. He scanned the dashboard, RPM looked steady although the gas pedal was not pressed. Something was wrong with both the car and the driver. He forcefully turned the key in the ignition to switch the engine off. the car started to slow but was still running pretty fast, and they were going downhill. He spared a look at the back seat. Both kids are strapped. The road ahead was mostly empty, the shoulders now were the rim of a cultivate land, muddy after the rain. He gradually steered the car there, it slowed further as the wheels fought with the mud, until, a few stressful seconds later, it stopped.

He took a relieved breath. "It's fine, we're fine," he said to no one in particular, but the smoke rising from the engine suggested that they were not in the clear yet. He released the driver's seat belt, then jumped out of the car, ran around it and yelled to Danny, who was already out of his car, "Get the kids!"

He pulled the man out of the car, dragging him away from it. A quick check confirmed that there was no pulse and he was not breathing, so he started CPR. Danny appeared shortly after, he could feel his presence hovering for a few seconds before he burst into words.

"You are nuts, you know that?!" He yelled, "What the hell was that? Was that a death wish, or some kind of a hero complex? What were you thinking, you crazy son of a bitch?!"

Steve's surprise at the tirad didn't affect his rhythm as he continued massaging the man's chest. He spared a quick incredulous look at Danny, trying to figure out if the man was serious. He looked serious. Furious, in fact. Steve frowned. "I was thinking that there were people in danger that needed help." he replied

"So you just did the first insane thing that came up to your twisted mind? They were like ten thousand other options to deal with this that did not include someone jumping from one vehicle to another at ninety miles per hour!"

"Well if you had a better idea, why didn't you say so?" Anger sipping to his voice as well.

"Because in my wildest, craziest, lunatic dreams I couldn't imagine a sane person doing something like this! Obviously, I had no idea about the extent of your mental deficiency! You could have been killed, do you get that?!"

"Why the fuck do you care?!" Steve hissed back

Danny, who was moving around, flailing his arms, froze. Steve looked up at the sudden lack of words and movement. Danny was staring at him, thoughtful expression on his face like he was questioning the same thing as well. "Why do I care?" he finally said "I don't care, you can go kill yourself whenever, just not on my watch." his voice was lacking the anger, and he didn't sound convinced.

"You know, I was hoping you would pull your head out of your ass once you realized we… have something in common… and at least try to...I don't know, listen." Steve breathed.

-"Listen? Why? do you actually talk, I thought beating people up and jumping off speeding cars is your thing." Danny's moving resumed.

Steve turned back to look at the unconscious man, checking for a pulse. There was still none. He himself was already sweating despite the cold air, the muscles of his shoulders and back tense with the effort. He took off his jacket and continued with the CPR.

Danny sat down across from him. "Let me take over."

"No, it's fine."

"Come on. You're bleeding, I'm guessing from your lunatic jump through broken glass. Let me take over."

"I'm fine. Just make sure the ambulance gets here."

Danny rolled his eyes "Why? Why is this happening to me?" he mumbled and moved away, taking his phone out. Sirens could be heard from somewhere in the distance. Danny sat back down. "OK, go ahead."

"What?"

"Go ahead. I'm listening. Tell me why you think dragging innocent people out of their beds in the middle of the night is the right course of action."

Steve looked at him in surprise yet again. "You want to do this now?"

"Yes. Let's get this out of the way, then, maybe, we can discuss wolves."

Steve thought for a second, concentrating on the guy under his insistent chest compressions. Williams was a wolf. The first one he'd ever met, not his ideal choice for a… fellow shifter, but the only one he had. He needed to talk to him, to understand more. So Steve needed to somehow convince Danny to at least give him the benefit of the doubt. "Alright." Steve said "So we have a bad guy poisoning his neighbour's water tower in order to damage his crops for god knows how long. Everyone knows he did it…"

"Not proven…"

"Indulge me for a sec, here. Everyone knows that he did it." Steve looked at Danny, who motioned for him to continue. Steve continued slowly, the effort of keeping a steady pace of compressions and speaking at the same time was taxing "Let's say you somehow succeed in proving it, as unlikely as it is. Jenkins goes to jail. How does it help Martin, the farmer who's field got poisoned? What will happen is that two families, Jenkins' as well as Martin, will lose a year's worth of crops. This will surely cause both families to go bankrupt."

Danny rubbed his jaw "Maybe, but this is why it was important to prove beyond doubt that Jenkins was responsible, before he'll be prosecuted…"

"I agree." Steve stopped again to check for a pulse, wiped sweat off his brow then continued the compressions "So if someone were to convince Jenkins to admit what he did…"

"You drag a guy out of his bed in the middle of the night and scare him half to death! Confession under duress is unacceptable in court!"

"You are not listening, Williams. I'm… Whoever did this, was not looking for a way to get Jenkins to court. It wouldn't help anyone!"

"So what did you want with him?"

"If someone were to convince Jenkins in the error of his ways, make him repent, volunteer to help Martin clean the tower and the poisoned field, donate some money to help him through the rough year ahead of him…"

Danny snorted "Yeah, right. Scare the guy into helping…"

They were interrupted as an ambulance stopped next to them, the paramedics stepped out and took over the CPR. Danny shook his head and ran off to meet the cops coming out of the police car that also arrived.

Steve gratefully got up, stretching his back and rolling his shoulders, as he watched the paramedics work.

Not long after that the ambulance was gone, and Danny approached him. "These guys will take you back to Winnett." Danny gestured toward the other cops "I'm going to get the kids home. They are from Cat's creek, their aunt is waiting for them at home."

"OK. We'll do roadkills another time."

"Sure." Danny ran his hand through his hair then pointed to Steve's arm. "You should get that looked at."

Steve lifted his arm, looking at the blood stained shirt. "No need." He looked back at Danny, locking eyes with him. "I heal fast."

* * *

Danny decided to knock on the front door this time around.

It's been a couple of days since his dealings with Steve, a couple of days during which he didn't see him, but that schmuck was definitely present in his work, in his thoughts, and in each and every way he turned. So he decided he might as well talk to the actual man.

He reached to open the gate, but the welcoming barking and teeth baring of the dogs stopped him.

"Ermmm…" He looked at the blonde dog, it was bigger than the dark one, but somehow less intimidating and maybe slightly more intelligent. "I don't suppose you are going to let me in, so, maybe you can get your boss to come here?"

The dog barked twice, the other one switched from barking to low growling.

"Good, good…" Danny hummed placatingly, "You seem to be doing your job properly, I'll make sure to let him know…" Danny looked up at the house in distress.

Steve stood on the front porch, leaning against one of the pergola poles. He was barefoot, wearing jeans and a light tee shirt, holding what looked like the same shotgun from the other night. The bastard just stood there and watched him, a half smile on his face.

"May I come in?" Danny shouted across the ten yards separating them.

"What for?" Steve called back without moving "Did you come to yell at me again?"

"Not initially," Danny replied "But I'm reconsidering."

Steve stood there for a couple of more seconds, then straightened and whistled "Wolf! Tala!" The larger dog gave Danny another hostile look then turned and ran back to its owner. The other one barked and growled some more, then it too turned and ran frantically.

Danny hesitated, and Steve called "It's alright, you can come in."

Danny remained tense, walking as carefully and non threateningly as possible, until he was inside the house, door closing behind him leaving the dogs outside. Then he felt a different kind of tension.

He stood in a small hallway, opening to a living room with large windows covered in brightly colored drapes with a floral pattern. The room was warm and inviting, the whole place looked clean and neat, and utterly different from what Danny imagined a young bachelor's house would look like. Very different from his own small house, actually. Maybe the guy had a girlfriend stashed somewhere.

But the TV was on, some football game running commentary nagging in the background, and there was only one half empty bottle of beer on the table. Maybe she gave him the night off.

"Let me know when you're done searching for evidence." Steve commented.

Danny sighed, "Yeah, sorry, I'm really not here to fight."

"So what's up?"

"I got word from the hospital, the driver from the other day, Looks like he is going to be alright." He looked up at Steve "They said that your insistence to continue CPR saved his life."

Steve nodded "Thanks for letting me know."

Danny shoved his hands in his pockets "I also had an interesting conversation with Robert Martin. After he dropped his complaint."

"Oh?" Steve didn't seem surprised, but that in itself wasn't surprising.

"Yeah. He said he wasn't sure anymore what had happened. After I pressed him a bit, he also told me he was fine, since his very generous neighbour, Jenkins, offered his help in cleaning the tower, and get this- He offered Martin to use half of his own field to work until his fields were clean of the poison."

That brought a smile onto Steve's face. It was a nice smile, Danny noticed. Not completely devoid of smugness, but it looked genuinely happy and a little goofy, which took the edge off what might be interpreted as patronizing. "Really? That's great news!"

Danny shook his head, but returned a smile. "I don't know how you did it, and I'm still not sure I'm going to drop this, but I have to say, it looks like this was resolved in the best interest of everyone. Except the actual law."

"Sometimes Law and Justice are not the same."

"I guess not. So tell me, Jones? Mc'cole? Lahey? Those names ring a bell?"

Steve looked at him in silence for a few seconds. "Ummm…."

"So **it is** a common practice, just like Meka said." Danny's hands flew out of his pockets as he started pacing "I knew there was something like this going on! Some kind of a conspiracy!" Steve raises his eyebrows. "People would come to cancel complaints, problems solved before I got the chance to investigate… I knew something was happening. Once is luck, twice might be a coincidence, three times is a pattern."

"Three times? What, you've been here like a month?"

"Three months, thank you, and after that incident in the field and what Meka told me about 'Montana's Justice', I investigated backwards."

"Montana's Justice?" Steve repeated, sounding a bit disgusted

"Yeah, I know, sounds like a rock band." Steve snorted, his nice smile reappearing. "So how does it work? People approach you? You're in the phone book under 'thugs for hire'?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Steve replied immediately, and suddenly Danny realized what a bad liar Steve was. Or maybe he just didn't bother anymore.

"So it's a word to mouth thing." Danny concluded "And everybody knows this, and the Sheriff is playing along, covering for his…"

"No." Steve cut him off "He knows nothing about this, and it's going to stay this way."

"Ha!" Danny yelled, pointing at Steve. He **was **a bad liar. **And **easy to manipulate.

"I mean... ummm..." Steve tensed "If there was something to know about."

Danny took a breath, examining Steve's face. "Look, I'm not saying I approve, but I can understand why you are doing this. I still think you are an arrogant bastard with some kind of a hero complex that needs to be taken care of, and I'm still keeping my eye on you to make sure you keep in line, and I'm still going to arrest you if you don't, but I had some time to think, and...I get it."

They stood there, facing each other in silence, studying each other for an awkwardly long moment.

Steve was the first to break it. "Want a beer?"


End file.
